Karnataka puts PPP medical college plan on hold after public opposition
Karnataka: The Karnataka government has temporarily halted its proposed plan to establish medical college hospitals under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
This decision was taken following public opposition to the proposal.
Regarding this, Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil said that the government had to halt its plans due to strong opposition to the proposal in several districts. The minister said, "People in Vijayapura and Tumakuru openly opposed this scheme, and although we didn't face any problems in Kolar, the government has decided to put the plan on hold for now”, he said.
Meanwhile, Patil pointed out that it was the previous BJP government that had proposed setting up medical colleges under the PPP model. The minister said, "However, the Congress government is interested in establishing charitable hospitals," and added that a healthcare centre being built near the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences in Bengaluru would be one such facility.
Following recommendations from NITI Aayog, the Karnataka government has decided to establish medical colleges in some districts under the PPP model. The proposed medical colleges will be built in Vijayapura, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Kolar, Tumakuru, Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Bagalkot, and Bengaluru Rural districts.
According to a DeccanChronicle media news report, at a recent event, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that the government is putting its plans to establish medical colleges under the PPP model on hold.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that the state will establish government medical colleges in all districts, including Vijayapura, rejecting the PPP model proposed earlier by the government. He said the state government is committed to expanding public medical education, along with setting up trauma centres and super-speciality hospitals across districts.
